


Don't Feel (A Nico di Angelo love story)

by Evil_Huntress_101



Category: The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Assassin - Freeform, F/M, HoO - Freeform, Love/Hate, PJO
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-10-03
Updated: 2015-10-24
Packaged: 2018-04-24 16:09:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 6
Words: 8,802
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4926244
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Evil_Huntress_101/pseuds/Evil_Huntress_101
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>I study his pained expression. This man had lost his only joy in life. I know his pain, but I feel no empathy. I'm an assassin, trained to kill anyone for a fair price. I can't feel anymore, even if I wanted to. That's why I don't flinch when he starts crying. I place a stiff hand on his shoulder. "Who is his friend?" I whisper to the sobbing man. "I will kill him."</p><p>Nakamura stops sobbing long enough to use a shaky hand to grab a Manila envelope. "His name is Nico di Angelo," he says as I take out a picture with information on the back. The boy is about two years older than I am with hair the color of night and brown eyes so dark they were almost black. His pale skin and dark hair and clothes would make him stand out during the day but not at night. That's when I would have to kill him. Looking at his build, I decide to do it in his sleep as well. I turn the picture over and saw an address and some information about Nico di Angelo. </p><p>Age: 17<br/>Godly parent: Hades<br/>Half Blood Hill, Manhattan NY. </p><p>I look up and nodded at him. This wouldn't be easy, but... "You have yourself a deal, sir," I say, shaking his hand. "Nico di Angelo will have the privilege of being killed by the Nightshade."</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter One

**Shade's POV** :

"My name is Shade," I introduce, sharpening one of my daggers. "Pleasure to make your acquaintance."

The Asian man who answered the door squints his dark eyes, so they look black. "I ask for a highly trained demigod assassin," he growls, "and they send me a girl?"

Any other assassin would have taken this the wrong way and just killed the man, but I didn't blame him. At a first glance, I don't look like much, just an average sized girl with her long black and blue hair up in a ponytail. But if you cross that side of me, you cross the most skilled demigod assassin known in the world. Luckily for Mr. Nakamura, he didn't cross me. I shrugged off his comment. "There's more to life than what meets the eye," I say coolly.

He frowns even more, but opens the door wider and lets me in. I look around the large house. It's clean, abnormally clean, with only a few whiskey bottles lying around on certain tables. My guess would be that Mr. Nakamura lives alone and drinks his sorrows away. I look at a picture on the wall. In the picture is a younger, happier version of the man, and a young boy who looks like him, but with a long scar running down his face and an eyepatch to cover most of it. "Is the person you want me to kill the one who killed your son?" I ask bluntly.

He looks bewildered. "How do you know about Ethan?" He sputters

I smile slightly. "I didn't." I replied. "I'm a very good investigator. So," I raise an eyebrow. "Was Ethan killed by this person?"

Nakamura shook his head. "I don't want him dead yet," he growled through gritted teeth. "I want Percy Jackson to suffer, knowing that one of his loved ones is dead. Then, he will know my pain."

I study his pained expression. This man had lost his only joy in life. I know his pain, but I feel no empathy. I am an assassin, a robot trained to kill anyone asked for a fair price. I cannot feel anymore, even if I wanted to. That is why I don't flinch when he starts crying. Instead, I place a stiff hand on his shoulder. "Who is his friend?" I whisper to the sobbing man. "I will kill him."

Nakamura stops sobbing long enough to use a shaky hand to grab a Manila envelope. "His name is Nico di Angelo," he says as I take out a picture with information on the back.

The boy is about two years older than I am with hair the color of shadows and brown eyes so dark they were almost black. His pale skin and dark hair and clothes would make him stand out during the day but not at night. That's when I would have to kill him. Looking at his build, I decided to do it in his sleep as well. He would easily overpower me if he were to spot me. I turn the picture over and saw an address and some information about Nico di Angelo. Age: 17 Godly parent: Hades Half Blood Hill, Manhattan NY. I look up and nodded at him. This wouldn't be easy, but... "You have yourself a deal, sir," I say, shaking his hand. "Nico di Angelo will have the privilege of being killed by the Nightshade."

 

_______________________________________________

 

Half Blood Hill. If I were mortal, I would think nothing of it but a pretty sight. But I'm not mortal. I walk up the hill, listening to the silent night air. Hopefully it would stay this way. I keep trudging up the slope until I see a sign. "Camp Half-Blood." I hardly pay attention to it as I step past. I look around the place. It looks like a normal summer camp, with a ring of cabins, a main hall... Then, I hear the sound of wings flapping, getting louder by the second. Like a flash, I draw my knives and throw one into the harpy's face. It disintegrated into a pile of dust in front of me. Unexpected. I look at the ring of cabins and think. If I were a Son of Hades, I think, where would I stay? None of the cabins interest me until one catches my eye. It's big and dark, showing no signs of life or happiness. This must be it. I silently enter the dark building, hearing nothing but the steady breathing if a single person. I stalk toward the sound of the breathing until I am standing over the sleeping form of Nico di Angelo. I smile to myself. Too easy. I raise my knife, and before I can plunge it into his chest, I am knocked over by a wall of force. "Get the hell off of me!" I yell and look at my attacker.

He is a boy with blond hair and sky blue eyes. I kick him off of me and run to the door. Before I can reach it, he tackles me to the ground. "Nico, wake up!" He shouts.

We wrestle for a few minutes before I manage to get the upper hand. I grab my knife and attempt to stab him. He dodges out of the way and I yell in frustration. "WHAT IS GOING ON?" a voice bellows from behind me.

We both look back at a very tired looking, very angry Nico. "Who are you?" He asks, still angry, but calmly.

I look straight into his dark eyes and say nothing at all. "Oh, we're staying quiet, are we?" He says icily. "Fine. Will?" He turns to the blonde kid.

The one called Will focuses a glare in my direction as he stands up. "Well, I was trying to fall asleep, when I heard one of the harpies outside. When I looked out the window, I didn't see anything but a pile of dust. So I came out here and saw her walk into your cabin. I thought you were in trouble."

Will blushes at that last comment, and it makes me wonder how close these two are. "You don't need to check up on me, Will," Nico scowled. "You're not my boyfriend anymore."

Well, there's my answer. Will's frown deepened. "Clearly I did need to, considering that she was about to stab you in the chest."

Nico's death glare is now focused on me again. "Explain yourself," he says. "I don't have to tell you anything," I hiss, and spit on the ground. Just what I was taught to do.

He snarls at me and slaps me across the face with immense force. It doesn't bother me, though. I've felt worse pain. "Nico, I don't think this is personal," Will whispers. "I think she's an assassin."

Nico looks back and forth, from Will to me, and back again. Then, he started laughing hysterically. "Of course," he says in between laughs. "Of course that's it. After all, a lot of people want me dead." He grabs my face and tilts my chin up. "So, little assassin," he spits. "Who is your employer?"

I shrug a little. "Sorry," I snicker sarcastically. "Employee-employer confidentiality states that I can't tell."

"That's not a thing."

"It's in my contract."

Nico throws my head on the ground and kicks me in the stomach. "If you won't tell me," he hisses, "I'll just beat it out of you."

Before he could kick the crap out of me, Will held him back. "We should just take her to Chiron," I heard him whisper.

"At three in the morning? Will he even be up for it?"

"Would you rather keep her in your cabin?"

As they argued I took the opportunity to stand up quietly and walk out of the cabin. The minute I step off the porch, I run toward the woods, snickering to myself. Boys are so stupid. The minute they are out of the cabin, I'm in the woods, in the trees. In my element. They will never find me. I run for a branch and swing myself up into a tree, waiting for the son of Hades to run by so I can kill him. So I can feel his blood in between my fingers. But it never happens. I frown to myself. Where is he? Have they given up on me? Suddenly a hand covers my mouth and darkness clouds my vision. A few seconds later, my sight returns and I am in a big room, sitting before a stern looking centaur. Oh, crap. They found me. I look down at the floor, ashamed of myself. I'm supposed to be asassin and I've been caught by two stupid boys and a centaur.

"What do we have here?" I hear him ask. "Chiron," Nico greeted. "This assassin was just sent to kill me."

"Is that so?" I hear Chiron the centaur kneel down and tilt my chin up to look at him. "Child," he smiles calmly. "What is your name?"

I frown even deeper. "All you need to know," I hiss, "is that I am known by assassins as the Nightshade."

Chiron's smile melts. "You're the Nightshade?" He says quietly.

I nod. Chiron stands up and whispers something to Nico. "What?" He yells. "We can't take her in!"

He chuckles. "Yes," he countered, "we most certainly can."

"She'll try to kill me again!"

"Not if she doesn't have an employer."

I pipe up. "Um, I don't exactly approve of this idea. Can I go now?"

"No you may not," they both say together.

"One thing's for sure," Chiron says. "We cannot let her leave."

"No, really?" Nico says sarcastically. "I was going to let her prance around in the fields, holding flowers and petting bunnies."

That comment makes me angry. I really hate flowers and bunnies. Nico di Angelo has crossed the Nightshade. I pounce on top of him and start hitting him. He growls. "Get off of me you little-"

"STOP THIS NONSENSE RIGHT NOW!" Chiron orders. He huffs. "Now, the Nightshade is going to stay here and train, like a normal demigod would, and there is nothing either of you two can do about it!"

"I can just leave," I muttered. "Not without taking a body with me of course." I glare at the son of Hades.

Chiron chuckles and shakes his head. "Mr. D!" He calls. A short round man wearing a loud Hawaiian shirt and holding a diet coke walks into the room. As he walks in, I think I hear Nico groan and mutter under his breath, "great, it's the wine dude."

"Yes, Chiron, what is it?" Mr. D asks, clearly annoyed.

"I'd like you to make sure that this girl doesn't leave the premises."

He groans, but snaps his fingers. I don't feel any different, but apparently, I've been cursed to stay. "What's your name, girl?" Me. D asks.

"I'm not telling any of you anything!" I yell.

He glares at me with his dark purple eyes and I start to feel a sharp pain in my head. It continues until it becomes nearly unbearable. But I keep my composure. They can't know anything about me. Ever. "The girl is strong," he notes. "But I can go further."

All I can say is, I've never felt worse pain in my life. As it grows and grows, I hear myself telling them my name, age and parentage. The pain finally subsides. I hear Chiron chuckle. "I'm not surprised that she's a daughter of Nyx." He kneels before my shaking form. "Welcome to Camp Half-Blood, Shade," he says gently.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yo, people, Huntress here, bringing another cruddy chapter written by yours truly. Enjoy!

 

 **Nico's POV** : So here I am, sleeping, just minding my own business, and then I wake up to see my ex boyfriend wrestling with some girl I don't recognize. At first, I think he's making out with her just to spite me, but then I see the knife in her hand and I'm alert. She's an assassin. Sent to kill me. And now, Chiron is making me show her around camp. As in, he's making her a camper here. I laugh to myself. Smart move, making me show camp to the assassin who just tried to kill me. Speaking of which, I'll have to thank Will later. Even though he pissed me off, he did save my life.

"So, yeah," I say in a bored tone. "This is the dining hall, behind it is the lake-"

"Nico, I really don't care," she rolls her eyes. "Can we just say that we've been everywhere and not tell Chiron?"

I laugh humorlessly. "Believe me, sweetheart," I huff. "I don't want to do this anymore than you do. But I also don't want to be a victim of that weird pain thing that Mr. D does."

She sighs. "Just show me to my cabin and don't talk to me ever again," she snarls. "I don't want to have to deal with the likes of you."

I stiffen. The exact words that everyone at camp says to me. "Because I'm a son of Hades?" I ask quietly.

She studies my expression. "Would that upset you?" She asks surprising me.

I glare at her and she nods. "Of course it does," she muses. "You think that everyone hates you because of your dad, when really they are most likely scared of you because you do nothing but hide in the shadows and stay alone giving them that death glare you're giving me."

I blink at her analogy. How did she figure that out from a sentence and a glare? She smirks at my expression. "You're shocked are you?" She says. "I'm a very good investigator. Now I repeat myself. Take. Me. To. My. Cabin."

I finally oblige and take her to the Nyx cabin. Sure, there's no one there, but that's probably for the best. Before she walks in she pauses to look at me. "By the way," she starts, "I don't hate you because of your dad." I look at her strangely. "You don't?" I ask. She shakes her head, smiling. "I hate you because you're an arrogant piece of crap."

With that, she steps into her cabin and shuts the door. I smirk at her comment. That is exactly what I would have said in her situation. I jog over to the infirmary to look for Will. I need to thank him. When I step inside, I stiffen. Why is he making out with Drew? When he sees me, he pushes her off and runs toward me. But it's too late. I had already shadow traveled to my cabin. I yell out loud and punch one of my walls. I shouldn't be upset. We're both bisexual, so it's fine if he moves on to a girl. But Drew? He knows how much I hate her! I broke up with him so he's probably doing it to make me mad or jealous or both. I yell in frustration. And people think girls are difficult.

 **Shade's POV:** So, training at camp. Not exactly what I'd call "eventful." At least to me. I've been trained in almost everything being taught to me. I've learned sword fighting, archery, and monster fighting. The only thing I haven't really learned yet is the rock wall. I look up at it. It seems easy enough. I grab ahold of one of the crevices and begin climbing. Almost immediately, it starts to shake. keep my grip on the wall as it rocks violently. When it's done, I continue my ascend. After a few minutes of climbing, I see what looks like lava flowing down. I yelp and attempt to get out of the way, burning one of my hands in the process. I shake it off and make it to the top. I look around. How do I get down?

I sigh and just jump. Even though it's about twenty feet tall, I land on my feet with only a slight pain in my left ankle. People look at me in awe but I ignore him. I don't need praise to feel like the best. I am the best. And that's not even me being arrogant. It's just a fact. I hear a conch blow and I follow everyone to the dining hall. I guess it's time for lunch or something. I sit down at the Nyx table by myself and calmly eat a peanut butter and banana sandwich. "Everyone," I hear Chiron's voice announce. "We have a new camper here. Shade, would you please stand up for us."

I groan and stand, watching multiple eyes stare into my own. "As you can see," he continues, "she is a daughter of Nyx. But she has a special case."

My head snaps up and

I glare at Chiron. If he tells people that I'm the Nightshade...

"She happens to be an assassin."

Everyone stirs uncomfortably. _That's right_ , I think. _Fear me._ "But we are still going to welcome this nice young lady with open arms."

_Nice?_

"Which is why we're having a second game of Capture the Flag for this week."

The entire dining hall cheered loudly. I rubbed my ears. They must really like that game. Chiron turns to me. "Shade," he says, "would you like to be your team's captain."

I stiffen. What? No. Definitely not. Never in million years. "I guess," I say, kicking myself in the shin.

"Very well," he smiles. "Will, can you explain the basics of the game to her before we start?"

There's a shift at the Apollo table and Will scratches the back of his head. "I don't know," he mutters. "Isn't there someone else more qualified to do it?"

I rolled my eyes. "Relax," I sigh. "I'm not gonna bite." I grin evilly. "Unless someone pays me to do it."

That gets a laugh out of everyone in the dining hall. I think I laughed the hardest, because it wasn't a joke. "Alright," he muttered.

"Alright, everyone," Chiron yells. "That's it for lunch. After dinner we will play." I throw my tray away and quickly run over to my cabin to meditate. I end most days with meditation to relieve my stress. Even though the day is halfway through, it's been a lot to deal with. I cross my legs into the right position and breathe, closing my eyes. I'm in this position for about an hour before my door opens. "Whoever's there," I say without opening my eyes, "I'm busy."

"Hello to you too, Sunshine," I hear Will's voice laugh. "I'm just here to take you to the arena. Chiron wants to see you spar."

I groan, but uncross my legs and grab my knives. "Let's go, then," I mutter, walking out of the cabin.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I bringeth you, the chapter that comes after the second chapter! XD Enjoy!

**Shade's POV:**

"Anyone else wanna fight me?" I growled after beating the fifth person who challenged me.

"I'll give it a try," says Clarisse, head of the Ares cabin.

Good. Slightly more of a challenge. She brands out her electric spear, and charges. I sidestep her first jab easily and slice at her chest. She dodges and we continue our fight, jabbing, slicing, stabbing. She jabs at me one more time and I pretend to fall, only to sweep-kick her down to the floor. I grab two of my knives and pin her shirt to the ground. I draw a third and point it at her throat. "I win," I announce.

She snarls at me. "We're the other two knives really necessary?" She asked.

I shrug and grab them from the floor. "Not really," I admit. "Funny, but not necessary."

I stick my hand out. "You were a worthy opponent," I compliment.

She smiles. "You too, newbie," she says. "I look forward to Capture the Flag tonight."

She walks away and Chiron trots up to me. "Well done," he says. "You are a very skilled fighter. I want those how skilled you are against one of our best swordsmen."

He calls out to an older boy with black hair and sea green eyes. "Hey Chiron," he greets. "What's up?"

Chiron smiles. "I'd like you to spar with Shade," he states.

The boy looks over at me. "Hey," he smiles warmly. "My name is Percy Jackson."

My smile fades and so does his. "Something wrong?" He asks.

I look at Chiron and back to Percy. "Do you know a person named Ethan Nakamura?" I ask.

Maybe it isn't the same person. He nods, eyes growing sad. "I did, a few years ago," he murmurs. "He was killed by Kronos."

I frown. "That's not what I heard," I muttered under my breath.

Apparently I'm not quiet enough because Percy raises an eyebrow. "What did you hear?" He asks.

I don't hesitate to answer. "That you killed him,"

I tell him. He puts on a hurt expression. "I-I would never-" he paused. "I didn't kill him, but I'm the reason he died. He saved my life and the world."

"And Kronos killed him for it?" I finish.

He nods painfully. "I'm sorry to bring it up," I apologize.

He shakes his head. "Not your fault," he says forcing a smile. "Let's just spar."

I have to admit, Percy Jackson is an excellent swordsman. He counters most of my attacks, and I do the same. When I try the sweep kick trick I did on Clarisse, he just jumps and continues fighting me. Eventually, however, my speed overcomes his strength and I knock his sword out of his hand. He looks at me in awe as I place my knife at the tip of his throat. "You have an interesting fighting style," he notes. "It's not Greek. What is it?"

"A secret," I mutter as I pull my hair up into a high ponytail.

"Fair enough," he shrugs it off and walks away.

Chiron smiles at me. "Your guild must have taught you very well," he compliments.

"They have." "I would have you fight Nico, but I'm afraid it's time for dinner."

I'm honestly okay with that. I think he might still be pissed at me for trying to kill him last night. Huh. Obvious sentence. I walk over to the Nyx table only to be joined by Will. "Can I help you?" I ask.

I had almost forgotten the he needed to tell me the rules of Capture the Flag. He explained it to me with a nervous grin on his face. "So," he continued. "Tonight the teams are comprised of you, the Hecate cabin, Hephaestus, Athena and Demeter. Our team is my cabin, Hermes, Ares, Hades and Aphrodite."

"Will, are you afraid of me?" I ask bluntly. "Hell yeah, I'm scared of you!" He shouts. "You tried to kill my ex-boyfriend!"

All the other cabins were staring at us. "Might want to keep it down a little," I whispered.

"Sorry, Shade."

I sigh. Now everyone will see me as the one who almost killed Nico di Angelo. I straightened. You know what? Maybe that wouldn't be so bad. People would be more scared of me and I love being feared. After dinner that night, my team met in the Big House to discuss the battle strategy. "I want the Athena cabin attacking from the right and Hephaestus attacking from the left. Hecate and Demeter, I want you using any kind of magic you can use to defend the flag. And whatever you do, do not let the Hermes kids get anywhere near the weapons shed."

"What about you?" Asks Annabeth.

I had just learned earlier that she's the head counselor of the Athena cabin and Percy's girlfriend. "I'm going to scout around," I say. "See if I can find where the flag is."

We all break off and head off to our positions. When the game begin, I climb some of the trees and scamper through like a squirrel. I can hear the clanging of swords and armor from the trees. After a few minutes the games begin to quiet down and I start to move more quietly. I can't find the flag and I begin to lose hope until I see something red in the midst of the green. It must be the flag! I grin and climb through the leaves toward the color. I finally see it. It's right next to a creek. A very pretty creek. I look around. I don't see anyone defending the flag and I become suspicious. I break off a twig and throw it, and instantly an arrow penetrates itself inside. I look to where it came from. Will. He's sitting in a tree, a look of pure concentration on his face and a new arrow already in his bow. I pick up a pinecone in my hand and chuck it at his head. It hits him and he falls to the floor. I take the opportunity to run for the flag. Before I reach the flag, something grabs my arm. I turn around, instinct taking over and I twist my attacker's arm. "Nico," I hiss a greeting.

He grimaces as I twist his pale muscled arm even more. "Let go of my arm!" He shouts.

"Give me the flag."

He laughs. "In your dreams, Shade." He pulls out of my grip and draws a sword the color of night. "Still think you can kill me?" He asks, a cruel smile on his face.

I roll my eyes. "Still going on about that, are we?" I sigh. "Well, we'll see what happens."

He fights very well. He isn't as good as Percy is, but he's much faster, and that disturbs me. This time, my knives and quickness aren't enough, and he kicks me in the chest. I fall to the forest floor, weapons clattering out of my hands. He flashes a wicked grin as he holds his sword against my neck. "I win," he announces. I smile at him. "Good game," I compliment.

I may not like losing, but I am a good sport when I do. When he doesn't take his sword away, I frown. "Okay, di Angelo," I motion, "let me up."

He laughs humorlessly. "'Good game,'" he mocks me. "This isn't a game anymore, Shade."

He kneels down and places his hand next to my head, pushing his sword deeper, but without piercing my skin. "I should really kill you now, you worthless murderer," he hisses in my face.

I give him a death glare. "Get. The hell. Off of me." I say slowly. "I'll kill you."

He smiles again, and I take the moment to kick him off of me and grab two more knives. "I try to be nice," I hiss as I stand up. "It wasn't even going to be a personal kill that night. But you know what? Now it will be."

I charge at him, knives flashing in the setting sun. Weapons clash, and this time, I'm not holding back for the games. I'm out for blood. I slice his face, not a deep cut, but enough to leave a scar later on. He doesn't seem fazed as the blood pools down his face. "THAT IS ENOUGH!"

We both turn to see Chiron followed by the entire camp. "WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS?" He asks, eyes smoldering.

I huff and put my knives away. "He started it!" I shouted, like I was some five-year-old kid. "We were sparring, and he won, and he wouldn't put his stupid sword away! He was going to try and kill me!"

Chiron focuses his stare on Nico, who is glaring at the ground, hands in fists, blood dripping. "Nico, follow me to the Big House," Chiron says calmly.

He obliges, but before he does, he whispers something I will never forget.

"I will never accept you."

 

**damn.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Shade's POV:** These last few days have gone by quickly. I train, eat lunch, train again, dinner, and go to sleep. Not really what I'd call fun. But today feels different. I'm not sure what's going to happen, but I think it's going to be big. This afternoon, I notice Percy and Annabeth talking to a girl I don't recognize with frizzy red hair. When Annabeth notices me standing there, I stiffen and look away. I hope she doesn't come over here. So far I've succeeded in not making any friends, and if she ruins it... "Hey, Shade," she calls out. "Come over here!"

Shoot. I don't want to seem mean, so I walk over there, hands tucked in the pockets of my black jeans. "What's up?" I say with fake enthusiasm.

"This is Rachel Elizabeth Dare," she introduces.

The redhead smiles at me and waves. "Hi, I'm Shade," I tell her, shaking her hand. "Are you a new camper?"

They all burst out laughing, and my fake smile melts, replaced with a snarl. "What's so funny?" I snap.

They all stop laughing immediately. "Sorry," Percy says. "It's just...Rachel's mortal."

My eyebrows raise in surprise. "Oh," I say simply.

"Yeah," Rachel laughs. "I'm the oracle." My mouth opens wide. "You're the Oracle of Delphi?" I say in awe.

Percy chuckles. "Look," he laughs, "even the Nightshade is in awe. Ouch!"

He rubs his shin where Annabeth kicked him. I draw my knife and hold it up to his neck. "How do you know my name?" I hiss.

"Hey!" Annabeth shouts, drawing her own knife. "Nobody threatens my boyfriend's life but me!"

"Yeah!" Percy agreed. "Wait, what?"

"Tell me!" I scream, ignoring Annabeth and pushing the knife in deeper. "Or I end your life right here."

"Ch-Chiron told me," he stutters.

"Wait a second." Rachel's voice catches my attention. "You're the Nightshade?" She asks.

I nod and pull my knife back into its sheath. "Yeah," I huffed. "So what?"

She stiffens and falls to the ground. "Oh, crap," Percy mutters. "Not another one."

"Another what?" I ask, panicking. "What's going on? What happened to her?"

He waves my questions off and grins at me. "She's fine," he says. "Just watch."

I watch as Rachel wakes up, her blue eyes now a bright green. She opens her mouth and this thick green smoke snakes from her mouth, creating a pool at her feet. But what creeps me out the most is when she starts talking, in this snake like voice.

 

_"Son of Ocean, Son of Light_

_Son of Death, and Daughter of Night;_

_Shall roam the world to find the guild,_

_Once destroyed, but now rebuilt;_

_Find the weapon bathed in gold,_

_To end the love that Night has told;_

_End the betrayal before it begins,_

_Or perish and let the enemy win."_

 

On the last line, Rachel collapses, but Percy and Annabeth are there to catch her. I feel like I am going to faint. The prophecy really took a toll on my deep emotion, reaching into my soul and holding it out for everyone to see. I can feel the fear showing on my face. Percy looks at me, concerned. "Shade, what's wrong?" He asks.

I turn to him, a look of pure horror on my face. I can feel my vision start to darken, and my knees buckle. Before I faint, I hear myself mutter his name. "Dusk." And then it all goes black.

 **Nico's POV** : Why I'm being called to to the Big House for the second time in twenty four hours, I have no idea. It was bad enough listening to Chiron's speech about the no-killing policy yesterday. But it wasn't my fault! Shade just makes me so angry and I don't know why. Oh, wait. It's because she tried to kill me, and now she is acting like it never even happened, like it isn't that big of a deal. My life isn't a big deal? I keep my head down and my shaggy hair in my face as I walk into the Big House. "What did I do wrong this time?" I gruff.

I hear a someone clear their voice and I look to see the murderess herself along with Will and Percy. Only this time, Shade looks...scared. "What is it?" I ask.

"A prophecy has been spoken," Chiron explains. "It involves all of you."

"What does the prophecy state?" I ask.

Shade walks up to me without saying a word and uses a shaky hand to give me a piece of paper holding the words of the prophecy. Wait. A _shaky_ hand? Shade always has the most confident gait, and now she's hunched over and her eyes are red. As if she had been crying. "Shade, what's wrong?" I question.

"Nothing!" She snapped, making me jump slightly. "Why do you care anyways?"

I don't care. At least that's what I think. But seeing her like this, weak, and sad, and emotional...

I love it.

I read the prophecy and my eyes widen when I read one of the lines. _"To end the love that Night has told."_ Shade was...in love? She's an emotionless robot. How could she have loved? "...have to go to Las Vegas," I hear her say.

"No!" I shout, causing stares of confusion from everyone except for Percy. His is one of sympathy. I feel my face heat up as I sit down. "I have bad memories of Vegas, okay?" I mutter.

Will stands up and starts walking up to me. I give him a glare that says sit-the-hell-down-before-I-gut-you-like-a-fish, but he keeps coming. He sits down next to me and wraps his arm around my shoulder. "We have to go there," he soothes me. "That's where Shade's guild is. We need information from them."

I shrug his arm off of me and glare harder. "Don't touch me," I growl. "I'm still pissed off at you."

He gives me a sad look and walks off. I notice Shade studying the scene and I give her a what-the-hell-are-you-looking-at stare. She raises an eyebrow but looks away. Gods, I hate her stupid calm composure! "You will all be leaving immediately," Chiron says flatly.

He turns to me and hands me a drachma. "Nico, you know who to call."

I groan. Really? I hate this already. Nevertheless, I nod and walk down the hill. "Shade!" Percy shouts from behind me. "What are you waiting for?"

"I have to be uncursed, or whatever," she calls back, melodic voice faint. I stand at the foot of the hill, drachma in hand, and flipped it into the air. It disappears, and I chant, _"Stêthi 'Ô hárma diabolês!"_

_Stop, Chariot of Damnation!_

Immediately, grey smoke covers the ground, and a grey taxicab screeches to a halt in front of me. "Las Vegas," I tell them when one rolls the window down.

She turns to me and gives me a toothless grin. I notice she's the one with the eye."Ah, it's the Nightshade," she greets.

"Hello, Tempest," Shade greets, causing me to jump. When in the name of Hades did she get here? "It's been a while."

"Wait," I say, confused. "You guys know each other?"

She shrugs. "How do you think I get around the world?" She asks.

Oh.

Duh.

"Whatever," I growl, climbing into the seat. They all follow suit and I groan when I realize that I'm pressed up against Shade. Great. I'm traveling with an assassin, my ex-boyfriend, and a guy I used to have a crush on. What a fun trip.


	5. Chapter 5

**Shade's POV:**

I hate this quest. I'm here, trapped between a grumpy son of Hades and a son of Poseidon who won't shut up long enough for me to tell him how horrible his jokes are. "Okay, okay," he laughed after his last joke. "What do you call a redneck deer?"

Will thought about it for a second. "I don't know, what?" He asked.

"I have no i-deer."

They both burst out laughing, and I finally snapped. I grabbed Percy by the ear and pulled him toward me. "Crack one more of your stupid jokes," I hiss. "And I will grab your eyes out of your head and shove them up your ass so you can watch me kick it!"

Needless to say, the rest of the ride was silent. I ended up falling asleep after a while, and had a flashback.

 

_"_ _Fifth defeat in a row," I chuckle at my opponent. He has dark grey hair and eyes the color of the moon, a lovely silver color. "Better luck next time, Dusk."_

_He grins at me, and holds his hands up. "You are pretty good," he admits. "But one more time. If you win, I'll stop bothering you. But if I win," he flashes a mischievous grin. "You have to go on a date with me."_

_I blush at his comment. Is that allowed? Dating? I hope so. I've had a little crush on Dusk for a while now, but have never really thought about it until now. "Fine," I spit, readying my katana again. "It's your loss."_

_*five minutes later_

_"I win," he announces, holding his knives up to my throat. I glare up at him. He seemed so much better this time. He couldn't have gotten this good after. Unless... "Did you just hustle me?" I accuse._

_His grin widens. "How I win doesn't matter," he chuckles. "Just that I did. So," he steps closer to me. "See you Saturday night?"_

_I purse my lips at him, trying not to smile or blush. "You're just lucky I happen to be free on Saturday," I say curtly._

_*two years later_

_"Why on Earth would you do that?" I scream at Dusk._

_He is covered in blood, holding his knives in his hands. At his feet is our dead instructor. "It was his time to die," he snarls._

_"He taught you everything you know!" I scream. "Why did I even decide to love you, you psycho!"_

_He looks taken aback. "You...loved me?" He whispers._

_I nod. We stand in silence for a few seconds until he pushes me against the wall. "I love you too, my little warrior," he grins evilly and kisses me._

_I shove him off of me and wipe my mouth. "Do you seriously expect me to kiss you after you killed him?"_

_He growls at me. "We're assassins," he says. "It's what we do."_

_"For money," I spit. "For the guild. For respect. Not for fun, anger, or revenge."_

_His expression is so full of anger, I think he might start beating me. "Fine," he yells. "If I can't be accepted by my own girlfriend, I'll just leave!"_

_"Fine!" I shout. "I was better off without you anyways!"_

_"I'll be back for you, Shade," he seethes. "You'll be begging me to take you back after I destroy this stupid guild. You'll see!" He storms out the building, slamming the door behind him._

_I sink to my knees and start crying. From that moment on, I decide that I won't be wasting my time with boys or even people in general anymore. I'm done with love. I'm done with emotion._

 

I gasp and wake up in a hotel room. I groan, holding my face. I feel my eyes start to water. I swear, if I start crying... Morning, Sunshine," I hear Nico's gruff voice mutter.

I roll my eyes. "First of all," I sigh, "if you are going to give me a stupid nickname, it should be Moonshine. Daughter of Nyx, remember? And secondly, where are we?"

"We're in Las Vegas," he says.

I sit up quickly and look at him, astonished. "How long have I been asleep?" I ask.

"Not long. You wouldn't wake up when we got here, so we just carried you to the hotel room."

I swing my legs over the side of my bed, only to notice a distinct difference. "Where the hell are my knives?" I ask, looking everywhere.

"What's the big deal?" He grunts. "You can get more knives."

He yells in surprise when I jump on top of him. "You don't seem to understand," I say calmly, but angrily. "Those knives are my life and soul, I killed my first person with those knives, they are my only memory of Du-"

I stop myself before I can say his name. "Nevermind," I mutter. "I just need them back."

I hear a door open and a chuckle. "Am I interrupting something?" Percy's stupid voice chuckles through the doorway.

I quickly get off of Nico, face burning. "No," I mutter.

"Yeah," Percy says, rolling his eyes. "I have your knives, by the way."

I practically sprint to Percy and he gives me my precious weapons. "Thank you!" I gasp.

"You're welcome?" He looks at me strangely and walks to the room next door. I sigh. It's just me and Nico in the room. "What part of Vegas are we in?" I ask.

"We're near the Lotus," he says, practically spitting the words. I study his expression again. The Lotus hotel slows down time. Maybe... "Nico, how old are you?" I wonder.

He looks at me strangely. "I'm seventeen," he answers.

I shake my head. "I know you were in the Lotus," I tell him gently. "How long were you there?"

He looks down, and balled his fists. "Seventy years," he murmurs.

I look at him again, trying to get more out of him. He notices me and glares. "Stop doing that!" He shouts.

"Doing what?" I ask innocently.

"Reading me with that expression! I don't like people knowing about my past, about Bia-"

He stops himself. "Who?" I ask.

"None of your business!" He yells.

"Was it a sibling?"

"She!" He snaps. He calms down for a moment. " _She_ was my sister. Bianca. She died in battle." He glowers at me. "That's all you need to know," he finishes.

I nod, not wanting to press. "Who were you talking about? He questions.

"What are you talking about?" I sneer.

"When you were raging about your knives, you were saying something about them being your only memory of someone," he explains, sitting on the bed with me. "Who was it?"

"Um..."

"I told you about Bianca," he presses.

I huff. "Fine," I mutter, looking down. "It was my first and last boyfriend. His name was Dusk. He's the reason I can't feel anymore."

"Can't feel?" Nico looks confused. "After what he did to the guild and how he left, I was heartbroken. I don't want to be hurt like that anymore." I sniffle, wiping the tears before they can fall. I continue. "So I choose not to feel anything anymore."

"What did he do to the guild?" He asks, pressing on.

"H-he..." I pause to clear my throat. "He killed our best instructor. Our mentor since we were children. A good man. He didn't deserve to die."

We sit in silence for a while before Will and Percy knock on the door. "We're going to start walking to the guild," he shouts through the door.

Will's voice pipes up. "If you're done making out, that is," he shouts. Funny thing is, his voice doesn't carry a teasing tone as much as a jealous one. But he shouldn't be jealous. If he wants Nico, he can have him. I don't want him.

"Very funny, Solace," Nico grumbles. "me and the assassin making out. That's so funny, I forgot to laugh."

I roll my eyes at him and walk out of the room. I happen to be a very good kisser. You can ask Dusk. Oh, gods, Dusk. As much as I want the prophecy to be about someone else...who else can it be?

 


	6. Chapter 6

**Nico's POV:**

I hate Las Vegas. For one, there are too many people bustling about. Secondly, it's loud. Everyone is shouting, and the cars are honking constantly. Thirdly, just two words. The Lotus. No other words are necessary.

And lastly, it's because Shade lives there.

Her guild is about a mile away from where we were staying. It was actually hard to find, but then Shade points out a secret door between two trees, and covered in vines. She knocks on the door three times, then five, then four. It opens, to a dark stairway.

At first Will and Percy are hesitant to go down, but then Shade walks down with ease, and the rest of us follow suit. At the bottom of the stairway, there is another door. She knocks on the door normally, and it opens a crack. "Hey, Shade, you're back!" a gravelly voice greets.

"Hello, Eduardo," she smiles back.

"Who are they?" He gestures toward us.

"They're my fri-companions," she stutters. "We need information from the headmaster."

Eduardo narrows his eyes. "I don't know, Shade," he hesitates. "You weren't able to complete your last mission-" I stiffen. "-and you haven't been here for two weeks. We all thought you had betrayed us and left, like Dusk did."

Shade tenses up like I had. "Well, I'm not Dusk," she states icily. "And I'm back now. So, let. Us. In."

He quickly obliges and opens the door all the way. I look around the room, and I'm impressed. It looks like a giant karate dojo, bit with all sorts of weapons flying around, people sparring, and someone watching over the entire room. It honestly looks like the Hunger Games met the Karate Kid.

Shade leads us up to the person watching over the room. He is a tall, stern man with greying black hair and a permanent frown on his face. "Nightshade," he greets formally.

"Headmaster," she returns with a deep bow.

"Who are your...guests?" He asks.

"Fellow demigods," she replies, straightening up from her bow.

The Headmaster stands up from his chair and looks at her in a way that I find stern, but calm. "Come," he motions for us to follow. "We must discuss this somewhere else." He leads us to a room that's even deeper below ground. I become nervous. Hey, you never know. Gaea could still be mad as hell for us defeating her. Luckily, though, nothing happens and we make it to a room that looks like it was made for interrogation. We all sit down at the table, but Shade remains standing behind all of us, as if she's our lawyer, our representative.

Our protection.

"Tell me, gentlemen," the Headmaster starts. "What are your names?"

One by one, we all tell our names. When I tell him mine, he raises his unibrow. "So this is the boy you failed to kill, Nightshade," he muses. "Honestly, I thought you were better than this."

I hear her sharp breathing behind her. I look in the mirror behind the Headmaster and see that her head is down, fists clenched. "I'm sorry, Headmaster," she forces out. "It will not happen again."

"I'm sure it won't," he narrows his eyes at her. "You know what happens if you fail another mission."

"I know," she replies, voice straining.

"Very well. Now that we've finished my business," he leans forward on the table. "Explain what you need."

"We need to kill Dusk," she states, composure back to order. "A prophecy states that he may have turned to the enemy guild and is planning to destroy us."

Headmaster chuckles. "And what is it that you need?" He asks.

"Information," Will pipes up. "On the weapon bathed in gold."

Headmaster's face goes from one of amusement to one of serious intents. "I can't give you that weapon," he growls.

"Please, Headmaster," Shade begs. "Don't you want the guild to be saved?"

"We will save it another way!" He yells, then falters. "Unless..."

"Unless what?" I ask.

"Unless she proves herself worthy." He grins. "With the Beating of Life or Death."

Shade tenses again and I turn back to her. "Shade, what is that?" I ask.

She breathes in deeply and nods to the Headmaster, ignoring my question. "Okay," she agrees.

"Very well." He looks at her sadly. "I sincerely hope you survive this, Shade. It would be a shame to see our best assassin and student die trying to save us."

He begins to lead her upstairs but I grab her wrist. "Shade, tell me what it means, dammit!"

She looks at me sadly. "I can't tell you what it means," she admits. "Unless you want to help prove me worthy by participating."

Considering that it would be my chance to get my revenge on her for almost killing me and it's called the Beating of Life or Death, I surprised myself by shaking my head. She raises and eyebrow but goes up to the dojo with the Headmaster. I sit for five minutes before standing up suddenly. "I can't take this anymore," I burst out. "I'm going to check on her."

I hear Percy and Will laughing and I glare at them. "What's so funny?" "One," Percy chortles, "we've been down here for five minutes. And two," he wiggles his eyebrows. "It sounds like you actually care about her."

I glare harder. "Me," I say. "Care about the girl who tried to kill me? No. Care about the sake of the quest? Not really, but it gives me something to do."

Will shrugs, a look of jealousy melting away. "What is your problem, Solace?" I yell.

He just looks at me, glaring. "We broke up like three weeks ago, and you're making out with Drew. From the _Aphrodite cabin._  And now you're getting jealous over some girl I can't even stand?"

He still doesn't say anything, he just nods. "Whatever," I mutter. "And boys say that _girls_ are difficult. I'm gonna go check on Shade."

I storm out of the room and up the stairs to see that the door is locked. "Dammit, Shade!" I yell.

I notice a light coming into the room, and see a hole in the door. I put my eye up to it and almost choke. There, in a chair, is Shade, face bruised and bloody, almost unconscious, and hair caked in blood. "Congratulations, Nightshade," I hear the Headmaster's voice say. "You have proven yourself worthy."

As he finishes saying the words, she passes out and falls out of her chair, coughing up blood. "Oh my gods," I mutter to myself. "Shade!"

I bang my shoulder against the door  until I break it down and kneel before her broken form. "What the hell did you do to her?" I yell at the Headmaster. "We need to get her to a hospital!"

He nods his head and I pick her up bridal style. "I swear to Hades, Shade," I growl. "If you die and leave me here with these two idiots, I will personally damn you to the Fields of Punishment!"

An hour later, Percy, Will and I are sitting on a waiting room bench in the guild's infirmary. I anxiously drum my fingers against the arm, letting my ADHD kick in. The silence is killing me. Will Shade be okay, or not? Suddenly, a door bursts open and a man in a crisp white coat enters the room. I stand up and walk to him. "Is she okay?" I ask, yelling at myself to act calmer.

The man smiles. "She's going to be fine," he reassures. "But she's very weak. Only one person can see her at a time."

"I'll go," Percy volunteers.

He and the doctor head to Shade's room, leaving me and Solace alone. "So," he pipes up, breaking the silence. "What's been going on with you?"

I glare at him. "Not much," I seethe. "Considering that you kissed Drew Tanaka right in front of me."

He sighs and scoots closer to me. "I'm really sorry about that," he apologises. "I was hurt, and angry, and she was in the room..."

"That doesn't make it less hurtful!"

Will glares at me. "Why the hell do you care who I kiss?" He shouts back. "You broke up with me, remember?"

"Whatever, Will," I shrug, not even caring anymore. "I'm done with you."

"What's that supposed to mean?" He asks angrily.

"When we broke up," I sigh, looking away, "we both agreed that we should just be friends. And now-after what you did-I'm not even sure if I can do that."

"Nico," Will whispers, tears brimming in his eyes. "What are you saying?"

"I'm saying," I grit my teeth before continuing. "I'm saying that once this quest is over, don't talk to me. Don't look at me, don't even be in the same room as me. I want nothing to do with you, Will Solace."

We both sit in silence after that. Fifteen minutes later, Percy comes into the room. "Hey, guys," he greets. "One of you guys can go in now." He snickers.

"I hope you two were behaving in here." I stand and walk to the door. Before I enter Shade's room, I turn back to look at Will. "Don't worry, Perce," I grumble, not taking my eyes off of him. "We were." I turn around and enter the room without looking back.


End file.
